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Grand Laker canoes in various
stages of construction at the
workshop of Bob Gagner.
Photos courtesy of Bob Gagner.

Dale and Bob cut their own wood. Trees are milled and allowed to dry a year or two.
Then rib and planking pieces are cut; the ribs are steamed, formed over the wooden
mold and attached to the gunwales. Cedar planking is attached with brass tacks that
clinch on the inside. The canoe is removed from the mold when two-thirds planked,
then the planking is finished; thwarts are added, followed by a lot of sanding. Fiber-
glass or canvas covers the hull, then it’s sanded again, varnished and painted. Dale
said he can build the canoe in a week but the sanding and finishing takes another three
to four weeks.

Bill taught at the Wooden Boat School in the past, but it’s unclear whether Grand
Lakers will live on after the current builders. Dale recalls teaching an eighth-grade
student to build his own canoe on school breaks for a class project, but there hasn’t
been much interest in new commercial ventures. There are half a dozen of the old
molds still in town, and the men hope a new generation will take up the craft.
For more information, contact Bill at 42 Tough End in Grand Lake Stream or call
(207) 796-8199. Dale’s Grand Lake Canoe & Paddle may be reached at (207) 796-
2884 or daletobey@gmail.com.
Contact Bob at Sprague Canoes, (207) 796-2512 or rhgagner@gmail.com.

Interior of a finished Grand Laker
canoe by Dale Tobey, of Grand
Lake Stream. Photo courtesy of
Dale Tobey.

Bob Gagner building a new Grand Laker in his
workshop in Grand Lake Stream. Photo courtesy of
Bob Gagner.

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